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We are Wellington | A brush with greatness

WCIS WellingtonCollegeSH 2023-03-30


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Year 6 pupil Daniel has become Wellington’s go-to artist whenever we celebrate traditional Chinese festivals. The young painter has only been formally training for three years, and his works are stunning. His Tiger-themed Chinese New Year paintings from last year were among the most popular in our annual charity art auction. More recently, his painting for Mid-Autumn Festival brightened up our main lobby and was selected as Wellington College China’s key visual for the festival. This New Year, Daniel once again represented Wellington with another spectacular work of art that graced the College’s annual Chinese New Year greeting card. Here Daniel shares why he started painting and what inspires his work.



01When do you discover that you had this kind of talent and when did you begin formal study?


I was in year 3. My mother asked me to learn calligraphy, but I found calligraphy boring. I was jealous of the pupils in the Chinese painting class next door. They got to use colour and could scribble. So, I asked my mother to help me switch over to the Chinese painting class. 




02Tell us about some of the artists you admire and why.


I especially like Qi Baishi's paintings. The works he did in his later life are these simple, minimalistic, uncomplicated paintings — a cabbage, a birthday peach, three persimmons, a few chrysanthemums, two radishes. They were a great inspiration for me when I was first learning how to paint. I am also starting to really enjoy landscape paintings. I copy many famous Qing Dynasty landscape paintings, including the calligraphy in them.




03How does it feel to have your work represent Wellington Shanghai?


I am extremely proud and happy that my paintings can be used at Wellington, I am very grateful to my school and teachers for giving me this opportunity, I love my school, and I hope that through this event, my parents can feel happy and proud of me!




04What do you like most about traditional Chinese art? Do you paint in any other styles?


I think there are many magical things about traditional Chinese art. The ancients could use such a thick brush, such black ink, but they painted the poetry of China's great rivers and mountains.  Works like "Qingming Shanghe Map" and "Fuchun Mountain House Map" portray the beauty of life. Recently, I have been learning to paint images of the Buddha from the Dunhuang murals with my teacher, using the most ancient techniques. It entails painting layer by layer and outlining lines, repeatedly. I am looking forward to the finished product. When it’s ready, I want to give it to my father, because he is a Buddhist.




05What inspires your paintings?


My paintings are traditional, but I also bring a sense of mischief to my work. I have a lot of modern ideas that I integrate into these paintings. For instance, I have a painting of an ancient Jiangnan water village, and among the many houses, I wrote "WC" on one of the walls. Because, even in ancient times, people needed to know where the WC was.




06What are the biggest challenges to your art form? What do you think you still have to learn?


The biggest challenge for me is writing Chinese characters with a brush. It is so difficult. No matter how hard I try, it is never as neat as it is when I use a pen. In the future, I hope to study Western oil painting and learn how to combine those techniques with the traditional style I work in now. I think I could create something really special by combining these two styles.



07Your work has figured prominently around campus when Wellington celebrates traditional Chinese festivals. What feelings do you try to evoke with your Spring Festival-themed art?


I am so grateful for the opportunity to display my work at Wellington during traditional Chinese festivals. The ongoing pandemic has made things challenging for all of us. Hopefully, I can help to spark some optimism in the hearts of my fellow pupils as we welcome a New Year. So, my Spring Festival-themed painting has rabbits, of course, but it also features fruits of spring, like red cherries, which symbolise a year full of life and vitality.



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